Director of Engineering And Operations

Precision People; Leicester; On-site; GBP 126,000 - 154,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Up to 25% bonus

Fuel card

Company pension

Job summary

Precision People is recruiting an Engineering Operations Director to lead three industrial sites from the Nottingham/ Derby area. You will apply your plant, process and production expertise to drive uptime, throughput and efficiency, delivering measurable improvements to profitability.

You will manage Site Managers and engineering teams, translate data into action, and align maintenance, capital projects and operational reporting with cost per tonne and EBITDA objectives.

Qualifications

• Experience leading engineering and operations for high-volume plants.
• Chartered Engineer status and Mechanical Engineering degree required.
• Strong track record delivering plant and performance improvements.

Responsibilities

• Lead engineering and operations across three sites, Nottingham/Derby area.
• Maximise plant performance and availability through improvements.
• Drive uptime, throughput and recovery via data-driven actions.
• Lead Site Managers and maintenance strategies.
• Translate engineering gains into improved cost per tonne and EBITDA.
• Oversee capital projects and performance reporting.
• Ensure safety, compliance and strong accountability.

Skills

Production engineering

Data-driven decision making

Performance management

Maintenance strategy

Process optimisation

Leadership

Cost per tonne

Education

Chartered Engineer status

Degree in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

Excel

ERP systems

Job description

Engineering Operations Director

Derby / Nottingham

£140,000 + up to 25% bonus + fuel card + pension

Do you enjoy using engineering improvements to make a measurable difference to plant performance and profitability?

Can you lead experienced Site Managers and engineering teams, challenge performance and hold people accountable?

If so, this is worth a conversation.

The Opportunity

We are recruiting an Engineering Operations Director for an established and highly profitable specialist materials processing business operating a small number of industrial processing sites.

This is not a general Operations Director position as you will lead the engineering and operational performance of the business, using your technical understanding of plant, process and production to identify where improvements can be made.

In an environment where relatively small improvements in uptime, throughput, recovery and efficiency can produce significant financial gains, you will have the opportunity to make a very visible difference.

The business is already performing well. Your job is to make it perform better. You will use plant data, engineering knowledge and strong operational leadership to answer those questions and then make the changes happen.

To Be Successful You Will Be:

• Highly proficient in production engineering environments involving high volumes of material
• Experienced in using data to improve plant uptime, throughput, recovery and production efficiency
• Able to positively challenge Site Managers, Production Managers and engineering teams on performance
• Experienced in driving maintenance strategy to improve plant availability and reliability
• Strong in mechanical plant, materials processing and process optimisation
• Able to identify bottlenecks and understand the levers that improve plant performance
• Commercially strong and able to connect operational improvements to cost per tonne, margin, P&L and EBITDA
• Comfortable working with operational data and spreadsheets to identify where performance is being won or lost
• A strong leader who creates accountability and operates with a genuine say/do mentality

Your Background

This role needs an engineer who has developed into an operational leader, rather than a general Operations Director who happens to manage an engineering team.

You will therefore need:

• Experience within aggregates, recycling, quarrying, minerals, waste processing, cement, bulk materials or another high-volume materials processing environment would be relevant.
• Chartered Engineer status, or equivalent professional accreditation, with a degree in Mechanical Engineering or a closely related engineering discipline.
• A Mechanical, Production, Chemical, Process or closely related engineering background
• Significant senior management experience within an industrial or process environment
• A strong track record of improving plant and operational performance

The Role

Based primarily from the Nottingham/ Derby area, you will take responsibility for engineering and operations across three sites.

You will lead the Site Managers and work closely with production, maintenance and engineering teams to:

• Maximise plant performance and availability
• Improve throughput and recovery
• Reduce avoidable downtime
• Strengthen preventative maintenance and plant reliability
• Improve labour and operational productivity
• Reduce cost per tonne
• Identify and deliver engineering improvements
• Support plant upgrades and capital projects
• Improve operational reporting and accountability
• Maintain strong safety and compliance standards
• Translate engineering and operational improvements into better financial performance

What Makes This Opportunity Different?

The business is established, profitable and has ambitious plans for its next stage.

You will be joining at a point where you can work alongside an experienced senior team, gain a detailed understanding of the operation and play a significant role in how the business develops from here.

For someone who delivers strongly and demonstrates the wider commercial and leadership capability, there is scope for the position to develop into broader business leadership in the future, potentially at Managing Director level.